Bagels, Bagels, as Far as the Eye Can See...

Kraków, 28 March

"Kra-koff!"

With that, and a firm tap on Francesca's nose, the Polish conductor wakes us up to our first view of a city we've heard nothing but good things about. Shaking off the neck cricks and fatigue of the long night before, all four of us set off with new energy to find our Kracovian hostel.

Five minutes later, we were standing in front of a massive city map, completely lost. Thankfully, we only gazed at it in acute sadness for a few moments until a passing girl noticed our futile pointing at street names and offered us some help. She was a local law student and was amazing, leading us right to our hostel. It was a fitting welcome to Kraków, where we've met with some very friendly and generous people.


(Flags fluttering in Kraków's main square our first night there)

We're definitely happy to be here but Jean and I were quite sad to say goodbye to Alex, our new friend from the States. It's so amazing when travelling to just click with people and it doesn't happen too often--we just wish Alex could have come along to Poland and beyond! But he's off to continue exploring his motherland of Bohemia, in the Czech Republic, and then back home to keep working. But, thanks to the miracle of the Interweb (and Facebook, and MySpace, of course) we can keep in touch and chat about each other's travels. Also, here's a link to Alex's blog, a wonderfully detailed account of his far-ranging travels; I definitely recommend it!

After settling in and taking a much longed for shower, we took a bus to Auschwitz concentration camp. Its Polish name is actually Oświęcim, and it's about an hour and a half from the city. You know going there that you're not going to like it and sure enough, I hated it. I hated (and like everyone says, hate's a strong word) the buildings, the exhibition, and all the information available. When you hear "Auschwitz" you think of the most terrible human atrocities of our age but when you're there, you see the evidence. A pile of spectacles. A roomful of shoes. The fragments of lives lost come back together to form a ghostly presence made tangible by 1.5 million people's horrifying absence.

Sadly, although the museum is set up to be educational and reflective, the tourist groups wandering around made both those almost impossible. It's free to walk the site but the paid tour groups get precedence, much to the chagrin of individuals like us who did a self-guided walk. I wish the museum, with its strong message, hadn't turned into the inevitable tourist attraction it is but rather, as intended, a solemn place for those who have come to pay respect.

A full day in Kraków tomorrow then we head to Warsaw to take a train to Berlin. Ah, Berlin... can't wait to be back :).

29 March

Our second day in Kraków is a quiet one. After the stress and sleeplessness of the night before, we had a nice long sleep and relaxing morning, enjoying our hostel which was, incidentally, voted #1 in the world on the booking site we use. We then wandered around the city for a bit, which is quite easy because of its walkability. Hm...I just noticed how many times I write the word "wandered" in my entries. That's seriously it: a lot of the time we kind of walk aimlessly, only vaguely knowing where things are. To have that kind of spare time and freedom to relax is a bit odd out of the context of the backpacking bubble. You know, the bubble... when all you think about is what your next meal is and you sit on trains talking about what you would do with $500,000. I felt badly when I went first and said I'd travel more and finance my own film, and then Jean said she'd give some to charity. Arggh, foiled! Note to self: ALWAYS say give some to charity!


BUT... right, Wawel Castle (above; us in the courtyard), in the south near the Jewish District, is a bit plain compared to the intensely ornate buildings we've seen in the past, but it still sits proudly on its hill overlooking the Vistula River as sightseers and locals stroll through its grounds. It reflects the city--plain but pretty, hard-working yet lighthearted. Krakow is one of my favourite cities so far for that reason. It's also just so pretty: it's much less touched by WWII than Warsaw, for example. That's its brand-new shopping mall below. Inside, you could be in Mississauga, it's so generic-looking... a bit startling to find in the middle of Europe, which isn't nearly as mall-riddled as North America.


We had to change our train plans yet again, now rushing to take two trains in order to get to Berlin by morning. We keep saying "Bad things come in threes" and we've had three already. I say "bad" but really, it's just some scheduling mix-ups. We have enough experience at this point (though we're not experts yet, by any means) to let certain negative events slide off our backs and I'm grateful for that. It's tough, because even with all the great people we've met while travelling, we're still in the big, wide world and not everyone is nice. I guess being a young student having the time of my life can make me feel invincible at times, but it doesn't take much to shake that confidence either.